Thread guide



Sept. 28, 1954 H. J. McDERMOTT THREAD GUIDE Filed May 26, 1951 INVENTOR. HENRY J. MCDERMOTT Patented Sept. 28, 1954 UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE THREAD GUIDE Henry J. McDermott, Collingdale, Pa., assignor to American Viscose Corporation, Wilmington, Del, a corporation of Delaware Application May 26, 1951, Serial No. 228,413

'7 Claims. 1

This invention relates to a yarn guide and more particularly to a guiding mechanism which, will cause and control the lateral displacement of two yarns which are to be wrapped one or more times around a wheel, drum, cylinder, yarn-advancing device, godet, or the like. In addition, the invention contemplates the prevention of yarns from riding or winding upon themselves and upon one another.

Yarn, as used throughout this specification and appended claims, is intended to include strands, threads, yarns, monofilaments, filament bundles, spun fiber yarns, rods, wires, ropes, and the like, whether natural, artificial or synthetic. For example, the invention is applicable to guiding yarns formed from such materials as silk, cotton, wool, flax, hemp, etc., casein, alginates, regenerated cellulose formed from viscose, cuprammonium cellulose, and the like, cellulose ethers, such as hydroxyethyl cellulose, methyl cellulose, benzyl cellulose, carboxymethyl cellulose, etc., mixed cellulose ethers, cellulose esters, such as nitrocellulose, cellulose acetate, cellulose propionate, etc., resinous materials, such as polymers and copolymers of acrylonitrile, methyl methacrylate, vinyl acetate, vinyl chloride, vinylidene chloride, urea-formaldehyde, phenol-formaldehyde, etc., natural and synthetic rubber, etc.

For purposes of simplicity of description, the

invention will be described as it is employed in connection with yarns of rayon or regenerated cellulose formed from viscose in the usual manner, it being understood that this is merely intended in an illustrative sense and the invention is not to be limited thereby but only insofar as the same may be limited in the appended claims.

In the manufacture and treatment of yarns, they are advanced during the process in helical turns on yarn-storage, yarn-advancing devices. These devices are well-known in the art. The yarns may be merely stored on such devices or they may be subjected to liquid treatment or dried while thereon. When the yarn is subjected to a plurality of treatments or a prolonged treatment, it may advance from one yarnstorage, yarn-advancing device to another and so on until the treatment is complete.

Attempts have been made to advance a plurality of yarns along a yarn-storage, yarn-advancing device in order to increase production. However, it is necessary in such instances that the turns of yarn be maintained out of contact with each other and relatively widely spaced apart along the device in order that yarns can be separately withdrawn from the device. This requires a relatively long yarn-storage, yarnadvancing device or else only a relatively few turns can be advanced along the device. Then again, there is a tendency for the yarn or yarns to wind or ride upon itself, especially when wet, because of capillary action between too-closely spaced successive convolutions, which in many instances results in chafing of the yarn and subsequent damage thereto. Further, it is undesirable, in certain operations, to have successive convolutions of the yarn come into contact with one another and this is particularly true when one is handling a newly formed artificial yarn which has a tendency to be tacky. Also, there is always the danger that the yarns will become entangled with each other while on the reel or other device and the removal therefrom in separated condition is almost an impossibility. It is necessary, therefore, that some device be provided which will cause and also preferably control, the lateral displacement of the yarn and thus prevent the yarn from chafing or riding upon itself or adjacent yarns.

In many instances it is perfectly all right for adjacent convolutions on the yarn-storage, yarn-advancing device to contact each other provided they are originally placed thereupon in spaced relation so as to enable one to readily separate the yarns upon removal from the device. In any event, whether the convolutions of yarn are allowed to contact each other or must remain separated, the distance apart of the yarns, when placed on the advancing reel, roll, or other similar device may be equal to the pitch or an integral multiple of the pitch, but is preferably equal to a fraction of the pitch of the device or a fraction plus any number of pitches so that the resultant number is not a whole number. Various guides have been heretofore proposed for this purpose. However, the pitch will vary between various yarn-storing, yarn-advancing devices, and the like, which necessitates a separate or individual guide for each such device. Therefore, it is desirable to have an adjustable or universal guide, which will be operable with any and all yarn-storage, yarn-advancing devices, rolls, and the like.

It is an object of the present invention to provide a yarn guide which is adjustable in such. a manner that it may be used with any and all types of yarn-storing, yarn-advancing devices irrespective of the pitch thereof.

It is another object of the present invention to provide a yarn guide which alleviates the hereinbefore mentioned difficulties and dis-, advantages.

It is a specific object of the present invention to provide a yarn guide which is capable of handling two or more yarns passing thereover and which is adjustable in the sense that one yarn can be moved to or from another yarn without removing the same from the guide.

Other advantages and objects of the present invention will be apparent from the description thereof hereinafter.

In general the objects of the present invention are accomplished by providing an elongated guide which has an annular groove in its face at one end thereof and the remainder of the guide has a helical groove cut in the peripheral surface thereof. The guide is preferably mounted in cantilever fashion from any suitable support or bracket mounted in the vicinity of the reel, roll or rolls upon or about which the yarn or yarns are to be wound. One yarn or convolution thereof is directed over the guide in the annular groove and the other yarn or convolution of the firstmentioned yarn is placed in one of the convolutions of the helical groove. The yarn or convolution thereof in the helical groove can be moved relative to the yarn or convolution in the annular groove merely by turning the guide in a clockwise or counterclockwise direction. When the guide is so rotated, the yarn or convolution thereof in the helical groove will follow the same either toward or away from the other yarn or convolution depending, of course, upon the direction of rotation of the guide.

In order to more clearly understand the present invention, reference should be had to the accompanying drawing which is merely intended to be illustrative and not limitative, and in which Figure l is a front elevation of a yarn guide made in accordance with the present invention showing two yarns passing thereover; and

Figure 2 is an end elevation of the guide shown in Figure 1.

Referring to the figures of the drawing, the yarn guide comprises an elongated rod or member 3 mounted on the bracket or support 4 by means of the threaded shaft or outwardly extending portion 5 of member 3. The rod or member 3 may be made of glass, porcelain, hard rubber, Bakelite or similar materials which are resistant to wear by the particular yarn in running contact therewith. Preferably, in the case of regenerated cellulose yarns, the member is made of porcelain. A lock nut 6 is screwed on the shaft 5 in order to lock the guide in position and prevent rotation thereof. The shaft 5 passes through the opening l in the bracket 4.

The peripheral surface of the rod 3 has an annular groove 8 cut therein which lies in a plane perpendicular to the direction of general extent of the rod 3. Immediately adjacent the annular groove there is a continuous helical groove 9 cut in the surface and extending to the outer end of the guide. The outer face ID of the guide 3 has a slot H cut therein which serves as a coupling or grasping means for a screw driver or the like implement for rotating the guide or rod. The helical groove 9 need not be immediately adjacent groove 8 but may start at a point spaced therefrom.

As shown in Figure 1 there is a yarn A passing over the guide in the annular groove 8 and a yarn B passing over the guide in the helical groove 9. If it is desired to separate the yarns A and B still further than shown in Figure 1, the rod or yarn 4 guide 3 would be rotated in a clockwise direction as Viewed in Figure 2. Conversely in order to bring the yarns A and B closer together, the yarn guide 3 would be rotated in a counterclockwise direction.

The rod or yarn guide 3 may be of any desired length depending upon the size of the yarns to be guided as well as the pitch of the rolls or reel onto which the yarns are directed, or in other words, the distance apart that the yarns must be. The grooves cut in the peripheral face of the yarn guide 3 may be of any desired depth and in particular the helical groove may be cut at any desired angle. Further, the depth and size of the groove in the yarn guide will depend upon the angle of contact which the yarn makes therewith and the size of the groove. The angle of contact of the yarn with the guide. When viewed as in Figure 2, may be varied as desired. Preferably, however, the angle of contact should be so chosen that all danger of damage to the yarn will be eliminated and this is particularly true when handling a fragile yarn. For example, in the embodiment shown in the drawing, the yarn B makes very little contact with the guide itself, thus eliminating friction as much as possible.

The guides of the present invention have many and varied uses as will be apparent to those skilled in the art. The guides may be used with any type of device in which it is desirous to wind two yarns or strands or two or more convolutions of a single strand or yarn, on a drum, roll, reel, a pair of canted rods or any other device in separated condition, or in which it is necessary to direct the yarns onto the device in separated condition in order that they may be removed from the device in separated condition. In particular, however, the present invention is useful in connection with a device for spinning artificial rayon filaments such as shown and described in my copending application Serial No. 172,224, filed July 6, 19 now Patent No. 2,623,240.

It is to be understood that changes and variations may be made without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention as defined in the appended claims.

I claim:

1. An adjustable guide for substantially parallel double yarn strands moving in the same direction comprising an elongated member rotatably mounted in a stationary support, Walls defining a first yarn strand guiding groove extending at least partially around the periphery of the member, walls defining a second yarn strand guiding groove in the form of a helix around the periphery of the member, and means for rotating the member in the support to vary the spacing between the yarn strands.

2. A double strand yarn guide comprising an elongated member rotatably mounted in a stationary support, walls defining two grooves extending at least partially around the periphery of said member and each positioned to receive therein a relatively straight yarn strand moving in a direction generally transverse to the axis of the member, said grooves having non-uniform axial spacing therebetween around the periphery of the member, whereby the strands are maintained in predetermined selective spaced relation with respect to each other, and means for retaining the member in a fixed position on the stationary support.

3. A double strand yarn guide comprising an elongated cylindrical rod rotatably mounted in a stationary support, walls defining two grooves extending at least partially around the periphery of said rod and each positioned to receive therein a relatively straight yarn strand moving in a direction generally transverse to the axis of the rod, said grooves having non-uniform axial spacing therebetween around the periphery of the rod, whereby the strands are maintained in predetermined selective spaced relation with respect to each other, and locking means for retaining the rod in a fixed position on the stationary support. 10

4. A double strand yarn guide as defined in claim 3 in which one of the grooves is endless.

5. A double strand yarn guide as defined in claim 3 in which one of the grooves is helical.

6. A double strand yarn guide as defined in 15 claim 3 in which one of the grooves is annular.

6 7. A double strand. yarn guide as defined in claim 3 in which one of the grooves is annular and the other is helical.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS Number Name Date 10,875 Coon May 9, 1854 609,106 Lauritsen Aug. 16, 1898 721,828 ONeil Mar. 3, 1903 733,345 Sullivan July 7, 1903 1,392,743 Bull Oct. 4, 1921 1,849,693 Root Mar. 15, 1932 2,011,809 Funcke et a1 Aug. 20, 1935 2,518,703 Marsac Aug. 15, 1950 

